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Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Clithero, JA; Reeck, C; Carter, RM; Smith, DV; Huettel, SA
Published in: Frontiers in human neuroscience
January 2011

To dissociate a choice from its antecedent neural states, motivation associated with the expected outcome must be captured in the absence of choice. Yet, the neural mechanisms that mediate behavioral idiosyncrasies in motivation, particularly with regard to complex economic preferences, are rarely examined in situations without overt decisions. We employed functional magnetic resonance imaging in a large sample of participants while they anticipated earning rewards from two different modalities: monetary and candy rewards. An index for relative motivation toward different reward types was constructed using reaction times to the target for earning rewards. Activation in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and anterior insula (aINS) predicted individual variation in relative motivation between our reward modalities. NAcc activation, however, mediated the effects of aINS, indicating the NAcc is the likely source of this relative weighting. These results demonstrate that neural idiosyncrasies in reward efficacy exist even in the absence of explicit choices, and extend the role of NAcc as a critical brain region for such choice-free motivation.

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Published In

Frontiers in human neuroscience

DOI

EISSN

1662-5161

ISSN

1662-5161

Publication Date

January 2011

Volume

5

Start / End Page

87

Related Subject Headings

  • Experimental Psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5202 Biological psychology
  • 3209 Neurosciences
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
  • 1109 Neurosciences
 

Citation

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Clithero, J. A., Reeck, C., Carter, R. M., Smith, D. V., & Huettel, S. A. (2011). Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 5, 87. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2011.00087
Clithero, John A., Crystal Reeck, R McKell Carter, David V. Smith, and Scott A. Huettel. “Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 5 (January 2011): 87. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2011.00087.
Clithero JA, Reeck C, Carter RM, Smith DV, Huettel SA. Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice. Frontiers in human neuroscience. 2011 Jan;5:87.
Clithero, John A., et al. “Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, vol. 5, Jan. 2011, p. 87. Epmc, doi:10.3389/fnhum.2011.00087.
Clithero JA, Reeck C, Carter RM, Smith DV, Huettel SA. Nucleus accumbens mediates relative motivation for rewards in the absence of choice. Frontiers in human neuroscience. 2011 Jan;5:87.

Published In

Frontiers in human neuroscience

DOI

EISSN

1662-5161

ISSN

1662-5161

Publication Date

January 2011

Volume

5

Start / End Page

87

Related Subject Headings

  • Experimental Psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5202 Biological psychology
  • 3209 Neurosciences
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
  • 1109 Neurosciences